100-proof Loss Of Privacy

March 29, 1986|By Red

County Judge Becky Titus of Sarasota has given first-time drunken drivers a choice: lose all their driving privileges for a year or accept restricted driving privileges while displaying a bumper sticker that reads, ''Convicted DUI, Restricted License.''

Sarasota Public Defender Elliott Metcalfe, who is the judge's husband, has sued to have her ruling declared unconstitutional. The case is now before an appellate court. Mr. Metcalfe contends the practice is humiliating and an invasion of privacy.

Oh, come off it. What else does a drunken driver do, besides threatening innocent lives, then getting out on the public roads and making a fool out of himself?

How can you invade the privacy of someone who makes a public spectacle of himself?

How can you humiliate someone who publicly humiliates himself with his dangerous and irresponsible behavior?